


Until The End Of Time

by ChewieTheHouseElf



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Angel and Human Only, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Alternate Universe - Post-Apocalypse, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Angel Blades (Supernatural), Angel Healing, Angel Vessels (Supernatural), Angel master, Angel-Human war, Angel/Human Relationships, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Archangels, Dystopia, F/M, Gift Work, Human Pet, Major Original Character(s), Maybe later idk, Minor Original Character(s), My First Work in This Fandom, No Other Supernatural Beings, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Original Character-centric, Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, Original Universe, Post-Apocalypse, Post-War, Rare Pairings, Slow Burn, Supernatural Elements, Updating, Work In Progress, Young John Winchester Vessel, au supernatural, emotionless angel learns how to love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-20
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-16 16:15:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 20,593
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29578746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChewieTheHouseElf/pseuds/ChewieTheHouseElf
Summary: *All Supernatural characters belong to CW."20 years ago, Heaven's hosts decided to show themselves and carried out God's Judgement Day." After the War, humans are kept as pets and servants to the angels. New government and order of society established. Kye is a human girl just trying to survive. Things become more complicated when her friends get her involved in the dangerous Resistance movement. She is torn between loyalty to her kind and the archangel she loves.
Relationships: Michael/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 2





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BleedingInk](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BleedingInk/gifts), [teaandchess](https://archiveofourown.org/users/teaandchess/gifts), [Ravenhoot](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ravenhoot/gifts), [ConfusedTabaxi](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ConfusedTabaxi/gifts), [bloodandcream](https://archiveofourown.org/users/bloodandcream/gifts), [waywardbaby](https://archiveofourown.org/users/waywardbaby/gifts), [HappyGoSuckyFucky](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HappyGoSuckyFucky/gifts).



> This is my very first work anywhere y'all! I was super excited and had a lot of fun (and headache) writing this first chapter. This is a new challenge to me. I do hope it'll bring joy and inspiration to others like the works of some of my favorite writers here on Ao3 did to me. Please read and give me feedback! English is not my first language so there will be mistakes, weird word use/grammar. I'm trying my best to edit every chapter (i asked my husband to read every chapter for me also). I have several ideas for future works in my head but I will try to finish this one first in a timely manner :) Right now it already feels like I have bitten off more than I can chew lol

"Please, sir...Master, please! Don't walk away, don't do this!" Kye pleads on all four, ignores the dirty, wet ground and puddles of murky water rising on her knees and elbows. The rain's getting heavier with every minute passed. Her dress, which was white a long time ago, now in questionable color and soaked through. She looks beyond miserable, her whole body shakes since the dress doesn't do much in terms of warmness, long locks of matted and dirty brown hair sticks to her face, dark circles form under her bloodshot puffy eyes. She hasn't slept for 4 days since Michael ordered his men to take her from the loft to an abandoned warehouse.

The warehouse used to be a prison for the "damned souls", people Michael deemed worthless and problematic to society. Kye suspected it was his excuse to build a torture-dungeon-style playhouse. Sure they were criminals and junkies but Michael was not God to pass judgments. Since he lost most of his interest in "the art" of torture, the warehouse was once again abandoned, up until Kye was taken there.

January is usually a miserable month, with bitter cold and nonstop rains, ranging from drizzles to heavy showers that last from hours to days on end. With all that, Ayham is often flooded, especially in Eastwick Alley where they're standing, the part of the city that nobody gives a shit about.

They're waiting in front of a large opening that leads into the city sewage tunnels underground. It's a complicated system anyone can get lost in, besides the people call it their home. The Resistance has been using the tunnel system to communicate, transport supplies and information since right after the War. They're more familiar with it than the streets above. A group of 6 men surrounds Kye to prevent her from running away while they wait for the exchange. Kye stares at the man standing in front of her. He hasn't looked at her once since they got here half an hour ago.

The rain is still falling hard on them. Michael checked his watch, then turned his eyes upward. He looks for Heaven, but all he can see is gray sky and occasional lightings. The rain makes it difficult for him to open his eyes. Human meatsuit has limitations but he needs it to walk the Earth. Without it, he's just light orb and energy wavelength floating around, too huge and too intense to do anything.

"Did I do the right thing, Father?" He thought without expecting an answer.

***

Some people say the War turned our world upside down, but in Kye's eyes, the problems already existed long before that, the War just magnifies them 1000 times. People like her, her folks, and neighbors are just stuck in a shitty card game with Fate.

20 years ago, the Hosts of Heaven decided to show themselves and carried out God's Judgement Day. Although no one could confirm if it was actually a decision from God, everyone had a taste, more like a whole 3-course meal, of heavenly wrath. The War lasted for 3 years. It's called the War because, to Earth's credit, humans did put everything in the counter-attack as an attempt of self-defense, but apparently, the latest and most destructive weapons mankind has ever made were no match compared to what Heaven had to offer. In those short 3 years of fighting, followed by multiple diseases and famines, half the Earth's population was wiped out. The angels' original plan was to wipe the slate clean and hit the reset button, but after a long debate, they settled for "kill half, leave half for reeducation". Humankind should feel lucky and grateful enough to cooperate then that the angels even gave them a chance to "redeem themselves".

Kye doesn't really see the difference between immediate death and slow death due to lack of food, clean water, medical care...She is "grateful" alright, to be selected to serve the master in Aax District, where all the angels and human officials of the Council live. The Council is the symbol of a shaky and unequal alliance between humans and angels. It was established "to ensure humans' lives quality under angels' supervision", a government of sort, much like the old Heaven, but right here on Earth. In reality, it's a shackle on humanity and the end of free will. There are only a few livable corners left in the whole world that are governed by different angel garrisons and their councils. People with an obscene amount of money can also buy a place in Aax District, but only after getting approval from the Council. To be honest, who would want to live close to a bunch of supernatural fanatics that can smite any living thing with a touch?

Kye was initially bought for 7000 Cubes, half a price of a good horse but still twice a monthly income of a household in her neighborhood, in a group of 12 girls that would serve different households. They were vetted when signed up to be sold in the market. The angels ironically are against slavery so you have to sign yourself up. Not everyone is qualified but the demand is always there. There are also recruiters to convince young, naïve people to sign up when the supply runs low.

While Kye is on the ground, her mind keeps going to her mom and brother back home, in their 320 sq. ft. container converted into an apartment that has leaks everywhere and smells terrible, unbearable to live in most of the time but filled with all of her family's memories. How they're gonna live without her now?

The fact that she's still breathing is a miracle on its own. Heavenly hosts and the Councils are famous for their ruthlessness. Mercy is rarely granted, especially to someone insignificant like her. Through all that, the pain in her chest is something hard to explain or she just refuses to. It doesn't come from the state that she's in: the uncomfortable position, the cold wind and rain bite into her skin, the unknown future her family will face, or the fear of losing everything, including her life, but something deeper, more profound. She should've never taken the artifact and given it to Ruby, never replied to people from the Resistance, and most of all, she should've never betrayed him.

She stares at the back of Michael's slate gray overcoat for a long time, still expects him to somehow miraculously change his mind and keep her with him. It's pathetic to hold on to that hope. Michael and his kind are not known for flexibility, a vast array of emotions, or change of heart after a decision is already made. There are exceptions though. At the end of the day, a change of heart did save humankind from going extinct.

Kye's eyes trace from Michael's dark hair, his gray coat to the back of his shiny black boots. He always dresses extremely well, complimenting his vessel: A Mid-30s man, 6ft2, lean and muscular with light tan skin, dark brown hair and stormy blue eyes. This is the cosmic being older than Earth itself who promised her the world not long ago, privilege and wealth that she can't even imagine. Power. Immortality. Protection.  _ Love _ . He has no reasons to lie to her. That's why it's like daggers to her heart thinking of what they had, what it could've been if she didn't mess up. 

"Michael, please!" His name slipped from her tongue. This is not the first time she called his name but it was always in the confines of his loft when there were just two of them. No servants or domesticated companions are supposed to call their master by name. Punishment for the slip of tongue varies, depends on the creativity of the owner, something not too severe that would kill the servant/domesticated companion but painful enough to be a lesson. Angelic grace can fix almost any mortal injuries so nothing is really off the table when it comes to angel's tortures. Michael was never above getting down and dirty with the "discipline". He's the prince of the Heavenly hosts, leader of the angelic army, the First Born, but also the master of tortures. Kye has tasted as well as witnessed some of his methods in the early stage of her time serving him that she would never forget or want to be on the receiving end again.

Through their 4 years spent together, Michael had changed a lot. Hard to believe, she did feel loved and protected with him. Their relationship had evolved from master-servant to true companionship. It gave her hope that If a cruel and rigid angel like Michael could change, all angels could, and maybe then, humanity had a shot. Kye had heard rumors of rogue angels left their garrisons and joined human's Resistance force. She would never expect something like that from Michael, but again anything was possible if time and effort were invested. She already knew where she stood with him or so she thought.

Everything changed when she reconnected with Ruby.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wondered why this chapter took so long to complete. Turned out It was as long as 2-3 chapters combined after I did word count. I didn't want it to become so long so I decided to cut it in half and save the rest for the next update. Work smarter, not harder lol :D Hope I won't bore you guys to death! Give me some feedback and suggestions, lovely people! Thank you so much!

The artifact, vaguely as it sounded, was stored in a 13x4 inches red mahogany box with weird symbols carved all over it. If Kye didn't know it was indeed a box, she would've easily mistaken it for a solid block of wood. It didn't have any lock, keypad, or opening slit. It was also deceptively light. Besides the fact it was quite beautiful to look at, there was nothing indicated this was the box that held one of the most powerful weapons that had ever been made. Kye only learned from Ruby that it was some type of close combat weapon that could kill anything it came in contact with, mortal or immortal, a true Michael's masterpiece. The Resistance was in the process of collecting any heavenly or supernatural objects it could use to "tip the scale toward us" as Bobby, Ruby's handler, said.

The Resistance, or The Red Serpent Resistance in full, used to be a small grassroot movement among other similar groups and organizations. For some reasons, it was able to withstand many seek-and-destroy operations from the angels to be the only one left standing in the West hemisphere. It has caused major chaos and a nuisance for the garrisons and its councils to deal with in the past decade.

Kye understands the artifact's importance to Michael and the angels, but what is her importance to the Resistance? It took them 5 years and many well-trained, devoted-to-the-cause men and women to acquire that artifact. It doesn't make any sense they would be willing to give it back to Michael, right after they just got it, in exchange for her. She doesn't know a whole lot about their plan either. She has only been in contact with them for 4 months, solely through Ruby and her handler, though she heard the guy was a big shot in the organization. They would contact her when she's needed, which is rarely, not the other way around.

How she got herself here, you would ask. It all started with a nothing out of ordinary business dinner. Kye accompanied Michael to a restaurant located between Aax District and Steel Heights, a more industrial area of Ayham city. He was going to meet Fergus Crowley, a businessman turned politician that somehow managed not only to survive but to thrive after the War. He was a Council member. This was the man who knew how to play all of his cards right. A lot of people saw him as a disgrace to humankind, who would sell his mom out for half a cent but Kye thought the guy was quite witty and resourceful. He could be downright funny and charming when he wanted to but don't get the wrong idea that he was your friend. Crowley was only on Crowley's team. Cross him and you'd die, or live to suffer.

Michael was listening to Crowley's plan about opening the harbor, how it would revive the city and help its miserable citizens. Angels didn't need food and supplies to survive but humans did and the city was in bad shape. That was the root of all the crimes and riots. The Resistance was also just waiting for an opportunity to incite more uproars and violence. They might seem like a bunch of backcountry idiots just having death wish but they got bolder and more creative each day that Michael agreed the angels should not underestimate these creatures if they wished to govern Earth in peace.

They were about to conclude the meeting when Alastair and his men came in gun blazing. His cold gray eyes locked onto Crowley's surprised face for a moment before moving on to Michael's. The angel didn't show any emotions but his left hand grabbed Kye's wrist with such a force the moment he saw the door was kicked open. His eyes never once left Alastair. He was going to teleport them out of there before a silver-looking bullet hit him on the shoulder. Alastair gave them a chilly triumphant grin, his whole demeanor reminded Kye of a predator just located his prey and was ready to pounce.

While a lot of people wish death on the angels and their councils' members, only a few had the muscles to carry out the threat. Alastair happened to be the guy with enough resources and connections, and he meant business. He and Crowley used to be partners, but something went wrong between them and there was just bad blood ever since. Alastair recruited a lot of competent people to work for him, one of them was a young woman named Charlie. She was a weapon engineer who obtained a Ph.D. in chemistry and material science at the age of 16. Her family used to dominate the biotechnology industry until they were all killed in the War. No one saw or heard about her after that, all the way until she resurfaced again, working for Alastair.

During the War, there were a lot of casualties on both sides. When an angel died, he or she would leave behind a weapon known as an angel blade. The blade was made of grace-infused celestial steel. It was considered an extension of an angel. The battlefield was filled with these blades. Alastair had ordered his men to collect them because he thought they might be of use in the future. When Charlie started working for Alastair and learned about his extensive collection of angel blades, just sat there taking space and collecting dust, she decided to turn them into something more familiar to humans. She melted them into different size bullets and strengthened them with Enochian sigils.

The bullet that shot Michael was one of these Charlie made. It didn't kill him but it wounded him severely. He could only get Kye and himself to an alley 2 blocks away before passing out. Kye had the fear of her life when Michael gave her a drowsy smile then went limp in her arms. Blood poured out from his wound turned his pristine white shirt red and started to soak through his suit jacket. She tried with all her might to lift him and drag him deeper into the dark alley. Michael's shallow and shaky breaths were the only things letting her know he was still alive. She prayed for the people back at the restaurant to somehow get away unharmed but she highly doubted it and then was not the time to worry about anything or anyone else. Michael still leaned on her heavily. Her dress and heels made it very difficult to move. They were vulnerable out there in the open. She needed to get them into a safe place and wait for the help to come. By then, the people who worked for Michael should already be aware of the situation.

That's when she heard a familiar "Psst, kitty" before seeing a silhouette emerged from the dark. There was Ruby. She looked just like the last time Kye saw her about three and a half years ago, in a burgundy leather jacket, black top, and dark jeans gracefully leaned on one of the back doors' frame with some concern in her eyes but a familiar confident smirk on her lips. Kye always found it endearing. The fact that Ruby was standing there, though unusual as it seemed, calmed Kye down greatly. She strangely felt the weight on her shoulder and the knot in her stomach slowly disappeared. 

Ruby had been Kye's best friend and family since Kye was 7 years old, right after her dad died. After supposedly signing up for domesticated companion job together with Kye, Ruby just disappeared. No goodbye or explanation. It drove Kye crazy looking for her, trying to find out what happened and where she might've gone but all Kye got were false leads and conflicting information. After a while, with everything going on in life at the loft and back home, Kye had to give up on the search and just prayed that wherever Ruby was, she could make the best out of life. Ruby had always been a survivor so Kye could only try to find peace with that.

Kye looked at Ruby, the whole situation seemed unreal. "Ruby, how...why are you here?" Kye asked under her breath. Her voice sounded strange like it was from someone else.  
"Later, Kye. Right now we need to get your feather boyfriend somewhere safe" Ruby straightened her back up and walked away from the door frame, hands in her jeans pockets.  
"He's not...Ruby, where are we going?" Kye panted with Michael's long body draping on her helplessly, asking Ruby who walked a few steps ahead of her.  
"Sorry" Ruby turned back. She put Michael's other arm over her shoulders to share the weight. They walked for a few minutes before stopping at the back of an empty store. Ruby pulled out her phone to type in a line of numbers. The metal door creaked open.  
"Cool huh?" Ruby looked slightly proud. They dragged Michael up the stairs that were right behind the door. It led up to the second floor of the building. There was another red door at the top of the stairs, Ruby opened it with a similar method to the last one. They got inside and Kye took a moment to observe the place. The whole floor was open, empty, and covered with dust. All the way to the other side was a twin size mattress with a single pillow and blanket on it, a small fridge, an old tv with two antennas on top, a chair, a laptop sitting next to a desk lamp on top of a wooden table that littered with empty beer bottles and take out boxes. The street lights outside shone through several large casement windows gave the space an orange hue.  
"Nice place..." Kye said uncertainly.  
"Thanks, but put your boyfriend down here, I only have one bed. Don't want to sleep in blood". Ruby threw the laptop on her twin mattress then proceeded to sweep all the bottles and take out boxes to the floor with her free arm. They dropped Michael on the table. Luckily it was long enough to take most of his tall body. Ruby went over the windows, carefully looked outside before closing the thick sand color curtains. The darkness swallowed the whole place. She picked up the desk lamp that fell on the floor and turned it on. Ruby then pulled out her phone again and dialed a number.  
"Hey Fig, got a favor to ask, please get your cute ass over here...Yes, the bird nest. Hurry up!" Ruby said impatiently before hanging up and turned to look at Kye.  
"He's not gonna die, y'know..." Ruby said. Kye knew her face must've looked God awful, she had tried so hard to hold everything in since they got to the alley, so she looked up and gave Ruby her best attempt of an assuring smile. Ruby rolled her eyes hard and groaned loudly.  
"Please, don't give me that heartbroken lover look like you're gonna die with him. His kind is tough and he's an archangel for God's sake, that bullet does nothing to him! Beer?" She opened the fridge and asked Kye without looking back.  
"No thanks, maybe later... Do you have something stronger?" Kye sat down on the only chair in Ruby's place next to the table. She took Michael's hand in hers. It was always cold to touch but she couldn't feel his grace prickled at her hand as usual. She frowned at the thought of what it could mean.  
Ruby gave the sight a thoughtful look before walking over to one corner, kneeled on one knee, and used her pocket knife to lift one of the floorboards. "I hide all of the good stuffs down here," She said while pulling out a tall glass bottle with clear, amber color liquid inside. "Whiskey, neat?"

***  
That night, Kye first learned about what Ruby really did in the time they were apart. She joined the Resistance right after Kye was selected to work for Michael. Turned out, it was Ruby's plan all along to encourage Kye to take the job, waited for her friend to settle in before going out on her own. She knew Kye would never agree to join the organization with her. After Kye's dad died, she had vowed to never be like him, went out and died for some cause, some "greater good", and leave behind a broken family. Her dad was a medic. A bomb exploded under his unit's van when they were on their regular route to find and rescue people who were stuck in the war zone. It took Kye, her mom, and her brother Nick a long time to pick up the pieces and rebuild as a family after his death. 

Ironically, the War was almost over then. Humanity was forced to enter a negotiation, more like a surrender to the angels because there was really not much else to do. Earth already depleted most of its resources. People who didn't get killed in the war struggled to survive with food shortages and diseases. It was hell. Kye's family took Ruby in around this time. She was this skinny, dirty thing wrapped in rags with eyes that had seen too much. Kye's mom found her wandering the street all by herself, eating scraps on the ground. She must've looked miserable enough for a woman with no means to survive and 2 mouths to feed already decided to take her in.

Listening to Ruby just left Kye in thorough disbelief. One thing to be an occasional trouble maker but an entirely different thing to actually go join a rebel group. She never, in a million years, took Ruby for the type. She was not some doe-eyed naïve girl or an idealist who would die for a cause, no matter how good the cause was.  
Ruby leaned back on the table and sighed "My life's shit anyway, Kye. Maybe I can do some good before leaving this Earth. This is no way to live under these sky assholes. I'm not gonna play house with them. No offense to you. By the way, I would not make a good pet either. Probably get my ass smitten if I didn't find the way to kill the fucker first" Ruby chuckled at the image.  
"Then why did you encourage me to sign up for the job if you thought angels were assholes? Which by the way, they are! You just left me high and dry!" Kye was getting very upset. Ruby made it sound so light the way she was just up and left everyone behind.  
"'Cause what else were we supposed to do, Kye? Ma's health ain't getting any better and Nick was growing bigger every day. We needed money, food. There were not a lot of job options out there if you haven't noticed." Ruby scoffed "My job at the bar ain't cutting it so I had to figure something else out, fast. They were hiring companion jobs for some hotshots just rotated down from Heaven so I figured, why not? It's not an honorable job but the pay's great. Maybe suffer a few beating here and there but other than that, don't have to do much most of the time, and if the angel likes you, you're getting out of the shithole. And like I said before, I'm no angel pet but you could be. You hated the everyday hustles in Eastwick and rather just stuck to your dead-end job at Donn's store getting abused by that asshole every day so I thought this might be the way out for both of us. I could go join the Resistance with peace of mind knowing that you're taken care of."  
"That's real thoughtful of you, Ruby." Kye said sarcastically, "Mom worried sick about you. Nick didn't leave his corner for days blaming himself that maybe he annoyed you so much that’s why you left for good, and I," Kye shook her head, her eyes started to fill with tears of mixed emotions, "I went looking for you like a maniac. We had no idea what happened to you. We thought of the worst-case scenario, because if you were alive, why didn't you contact us? Why didn't you come home? You're something else, Ruby" Kye chuckled humorlessly.  
Ruby sighed with an apologetic look in her eyes "Look, I know I've been real shitty to you guys. I never meant for it to be like that. But it was dangerous ok? What I decided to do was dangerous. I was not even sure I did the right thing, so the less you knew, the better." Ruby came closer and kneeled on one knee to be on eye level with Kye. Kye continued shaking her head while looking into Ruby's eyes. There were so many things left unsaid between them, so many questions Kye wanted to ask. They stayed like that for a long moment, staring at each other before 3 crude knocks threw them back to reality.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember “work smarter, not harder,” I said in the last chapter’s note? I accidentally deleted my work, twice! The first time, all 3000 something words of not only this chapter but some drafts for the next chapter. I tried to retype everything from memory and ended up making some changes, new details, then I found out the original work was still there in my phone. I had 2 versions to work with! I picked the details I like from each one and blended them together. Cool, very happy, ready to post, then again deleted half of this new work! 😂 Please, someone grips me tight and raises me from perdition! Now I had to go back to the unedited original one that was on my phone, edited it again, and put it together with the undeleted half of the ready-to-go one. Thank Chuck very much!  
> People, save, save, save your work, email it to yourself if you have to. (Which I did) Don't be a dummy like me! After everything, this is what I've got to offer. So please enjoy and give it some love. Thanks a lot!

Both women jumped at the sound. Ruby pulled out a handgun from under the table and edged carefully toward the door to look through the peephole. Seeing the person on the other side, she sighed and switched the gun safety back on before pushing it down the back of her jeans' waistband. She opened the door for a chubby guy with a long, fluffy mane of curly ginger hair who wore a black corduroy sport jacket with matching pants and a Kiss band T-shirt under. He carried a large black leather bag that house call doctors used. The guy looked like he was out of breath just by climbing up the stairs. Wiping the sweats off his forehead, Fig walked toward Kye and Michael.  
"What's the deal, Ruby? Who are these?...”  
Before Ruby could answer, Fig stopped dead in his track and his eyes went wide when he recognized who was laying on the table.  
"Don't tell me you're stupid enough to take an archangel back to your place. You know better than this!" He lowered his voice gravely to a hiss.  
Ruby walked over to put both of her hands on his shoulders and squeezed them.  
"Look, I'll deal with it. You just need to fix him."  
Fig puts his sausage index finger up to Ruby's face in a serious manner. "You're gonna get us all killed someday, Ruby. Don't say I didn't warn ya. And why it's always my ass helping you clean up all the messes?" He frustratingly added.  
"Because," Ruby said in her sing-song voice "you love my cute ass and I love yours too. You know I always got your back.” Ruby soothed him the way someone would soothe a child before slapping his rear and pushing him forward.  
"Now get to work. Mama ain't got all night. Chop chop!"  
Fig looked extremely uncomfortable and unwilling. He sighed loudly, cursed under his breath while shuffling through his bag to pull out a series of small glass bottles and medical tools. He set them on the chair then took off his corduroy jacket and threw it on the mattress. After tightening his hair into a ponytail, he gave Michael a once-over and looked at Kye and Ruby.  
"Now ladies, I may need your help to hold him still."

***  
The night was long and stressful, with Michael's breath occasionally hitched when Fig dug too deep into his wound trying to gain access to the grace under. It soon turned into whimpers then screams. They had to give him some cloth to bite on to keep it down and prevent him from biting his tongue off. Ruby and Kye held on to him with their dear lives. He was still extremely strong considering his unconscious state.  
"Should've remembered to buy some rope!" Ruby groaned frustratingly.  
Kye would laugh if she wasn't also trying her very best not to be thrown to the side by Michael. 

His muffled scream was deafening. It scratched on Kye's every nerve. Every minute passed threatened to push her over the edge with fear and heartache. It's extremely difficult to see him in that state. He was always so strong, so untouchable, an immortal being that knew no pain or fear. He never looked so vulnerable, so damaged. His whole body was covered in sweat. Black ooze replaced red blood flowed sluggishly from his wound.

Fig observed the long silver needle he just pulled out from Michael's shoulder and hummed with approval.  
"Time for the hard part.”  
He poured a clear liquid into the wound and leaned closer to watch it shimmer for a moment before getting absorbed. A strong clean ozone smell filled up the space followed by a pulse of energy that everyone in the room could feel. The streetlights outside and the desk lamp flickered for 5 minutes. Something exploded outside. As soon as it started, it stopped.  
"Any time now..."  
Fig straightened his back and exhaled. He wiped his hands then walked over to Ruby's mattress and threw himself facedown on it. The women stared at his back bewilderedly.  
"What now?" Kye asked.  
"Now we wait." Fig's voice muffled from the mattress "Wake me up in 10.” He snored before they could say anything else.  
"Guy has some special talent.” Ruby said amusingly "You want something to eat? I'm starving."  
Kye leaned her hip on the table and tilted her head to look at Michael. He seemed peaceful.  
"No, thanks. And I doubt you have anything edible in that tiny fridge of yours" She said while wiping the sweat off his forehead.  
"Hey, beer is edible, or drinkable, whatever. There's some leftover Chinese if you want to share." Ruby opened the fridge and winked. Kye shook her head and gave Ruby a tired smile.

The awkward silence was back when both of them remembered the conversation left unfinished before Fig came in. The only sounds left in the place were Fig's snoring and Michael's slow breathing.  
"Look, Kye..." Ruby finally opened her mouth.  
"Please,” Kye stopped her with a sigh, “you don’t have to say anything. I understand where you come from. It was not right or fair to us the way you left like that but it was your life, you make the decisions that are best for you. I just hope everything works out in the end, and no matter what, just know you always have a home to go back to.”  
Ruby leaned back on the fridge and looked down at her boots for a long time. Eventually, she lifted her head and looked at Kye.  
“Thank you, sis.”  
Kye gave her a sad smile before turning back to Michael. They removed his jacket and dress shirt a while ago. There were blood and black residue on his toned torso so Kye took the responsibility of cleaning them off. His skin was cool under her hands then and she could feel a faint, familiar zing coming up to the surface. It gave Kye an overwhelming sense of relief and hope. She cupped Michael's cheek and whispered "Wake up, please". His hands twitched and his eyeballs moved around under the eyelids like he actually could hear what she said and reacted to it. Kye ran toward Fig who was lying on the mattress and gave him a shake.  
"Hey Fig, looks like Michael's about to wake up!”  
"Who? What? Where?" Fig spurted out a bunch of random short questions before slowly coming back to reality. "Oh, him. Right...It’s about time."  
He checked his watch, swept the hair out of his face, and sat up. Fig looked like he had been to hell and back in that 10-minute nap. He walked over to where they laid Michael and put his face very close to the wound. It seemed like an old wound that happened days ago then, already covered with new pink skin.

According to Fig, the problem was not with Michael's gunshot wound but with his damaged grace. Grace was an angel's life source and energy, what made them what they were. It was pretty much like a human's soul. All of the angel's powers came from his or her grace. Without it, the angel was mortal. Grace could be manipulated in different ways, it could be charged up, drained out, bound, or share between individuals. All angels could use each other's grace interchangeably but it was different when it came to humans, only a true vessel or a strengthened one could contain an angel's grace for a long time or eternity without deteriorating.

It was easy to see that the attack at the restaurant was aimed at Michael. The bullet carried some deadly sigils to any lower level angel had punctured Michael's grace then dissolved itself, poisoned him from inside out. If it was not for the fact Michael was an archangel, he would've died the moment his body came in contact with it. The Resistance had known about these bullets' existence for a while but they couldn't get their hands on them. Their quantity was limited. Alastair had hogged 90 percent of unclaimed angel blades out there and guarded them with his life. It was a form of insurance. What made these bullets special also came from Charlie's combination of Enochian sigils carved on them that no one got access to besides herself and Alastair. It was her best work, a lifetime worth of research to perfect that combination.

Kye suddenly remembered her walk with Michael a while ago. They always took one together before dinner and talked about every random thing on Earth and Heaven. Out of the blue, Michael asked her what she thought about being immortal. He had this strange hesitant but hopeful look in his large blue eyes that reminded Kye of a child presenting his best artwork, waiting for compliments. She thought that was weird of him but just chucked it up to Michael's occasional curiosity and boredom in his long existence. She answered him truthfully that she didn't think much about it at all and while it seemed nice, the truth is immortality was more like a curse than a blessing to her.  
"It would be a lonely existence. Everyone I love would be gone. I would have to mourn their deaths, one by one. There would be no true connection or love with anybody because I would outlive everybody anyway. I would just slowly wither."  
"Why so gloomy? What about if you don't have to go through it all alone? What if you could spend eternity with someone you love, isn't it better?" Michael smiled charmingly.  
"Yes, it may be, but I wouldn't know, and to be honest, I don't think humans are designed to live forever. Being immortal, our body would stay the same but our mind would grow old and dull and we would slowly lose ourselves." Kye let her eyes wander far away while she was deep in thought. "Like this is better. Everyone has one life to live. You do your best to fulfill that life and when it's your time, you lie down and rest. Same to everyone so it's fair. It may not make a lot of sense to you, Master, but I wouldn't trade it for anything else."  
She remembered a disappointed look on Michael's face, so brief that she thought her eyes must've mistaken. He then put his permanently calm, unreadable smile back on and took her arm in his. They resumed their walk back to the loft without exchanging any more words.

Listening to Fig, It started to dawn on Kye at that moment what Michael really wanted to ask. Her heartfelt like it was hit with a force of a train. She saw Fig's mouth opened and closed but she couldn't hear a word he said. Everything became a blur and Michael's face was the only thing in focus. She walked over and leaned down, ignoring the "what are you doing?" look on Ruby and Fig's faces. She gently traced his facial features and ran her fingers through his soft brown hair. Her eyes started to swell up. God, Michael really had that effect on her. All she wanted at that moment was for those deep blue eyes to open again and looked at her.

***  
They waited for what felt like an eternity before dawn came. The colors slowly returned to Michael's face and his breath evened out. His grace started to work again, repairing the damage on his vessel. Fig closed the bag and put his jacket back on.  
"Ok ladies, I’ve done my part. His grace is recharging, he should be back in no time. Now, if you excuse me, I have to get myself out of here before His Highness wakes up. Don't feel like going to Aax today!" He walked as fast as his short legs allowed out of Ruby's place, the door slammed behind him. Kye and Ruby both stared at the door for a minute before chortling.  
"Now what?" Ruby asked.  
"We'll wait for his men to come to pick us up. They should be here anytime. Took them long enough already” Kye looked at Ruby "You should get out of here. Sorry, you may have to wait until we all cleared out before coming back to this place."  
"I would've stayed with you if it's not for the fact I'm literally on the watchlist” Ruby looked apologetic. She then gave Kye a mischievous wink. “Take care of your boyfriend, but don't overdo it.”  
The way she emphasized “take care” made Kye rolled her eyes. Typical Ruby always thought she had a great sense of humor. That was a nice thought but really the last thing on Kye’s mind at the moment.  
“You still use the same number?” Ruby looked at her phone and asked. Kye nodded.  
“I'll call you later” Ruby turned her phone off and put it in her back pocket. Before walking out the door, Ruby stopped and said quietly over her shoulders.  
“Tell Ma and Nick I’m ok...And I’m sorry for everything.”  
Just like that, she was gone. Kye stared at the door for a long moment before turning back to check on Michael. She was met with a pair of the most intense azure eyes staring back at her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm building up the whole angel/human relationship. This story is a slow burn so I should have time to develop the chemistry. I really don't want to rush. I also have no ideas how to write love scenes lol but I do like to read them in other people's works and def want to add them to the story more often. At the end of the day, this story is supposed to be a love story. I'm still thinking of how to go about the whole "sex with the angel" thing. Let's see how it goes :D I don't feel 100% with this chapter but I will find a way to improve on the next one. Having no plans and letting the story lead you might not be the best idea after all :D Just hope I can make a solid story.  
> There are a lot of conflicting information about who is the first angel created, Michael or Lucifer, even Supernatural show couldn't get their story straight through the seasons so I will stick with Michael as the First Born since it suits his personality and to be honest, IDK if Lucifer will be in this story at this moment.
> 
> The poem is Before You Came by Faiz Ahmed (or Ahmad) Faiz, a Pakistani poet, and translated by Agha Shahid Ali. I think it's beautiful and sets a tone for the chapter.

“Before you came,  
things were as they should be:  
the sky was the dead-end of sight,  
the road was just a road, wine merely wine.

Now everything is like my heart,  
a color at the edge of blood:  
the grey of your absence, the color of poison, of thorns,  
the gold when we meet, the season ablaze,  
the yellow of autumn, the red of flowers, of flames,  
and the black when you cover the earth  
with the coal of dead fires.

And the sky, the road, the glass of wine?  
The sky is a shirt wet with tears,  
the road a vein about to break,  
and the glass of wine a mirror in which  
the sky, the road, the world keep changing.

Don't leave now that you're here—  
Stay. So the world may become like itself again:  
so the sky may be the sky,  
the road a road,  
and the glass of wine not a mirror, just a glass of wine.”

***

The rain has just stopped for a moment. Kye shakes violently due to the cold wind blowing on her wet hair and body. Michael caught a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye and the sight makes him frown. He checks his watch then tilts his head to whisper something in one of the men’s ears. The guy walked to the car and came back with an oatmeal-colored blanket and threw it on top of Kye. She looked up in surprise and quickly wrap the material around her body. It's still not warm enough but definitely better than before.

They hear the sound of several cars approaching. In front of the line is a moss green jeep. Two guys come out of it, one holds a black lockbox. Michael turns back and walks over to where Kye still crouches on the ground. He sighs then grabs her elbows and lifts her up on her feet. She can imagine how his hands feel under the leather gloves. They are always cool, a little cold even, but they get warmed up almost instantly every time they touch her skin. They are strong, clean, and filled with angelic grace that makes her skin prickle. When their eyes meet fully for the first time, Kye can see a mixture of emotions in his that she can’t quite read. They’re gone before she knows it and there stands Michael the archangel again, completely unexpressive.

“Michael...”  
Kye searches his face for something that’s not there anymore. She holds on to the hope that somewhere inside, he’s not as unaffected as he seems. Michael still holds on to her elbows, a little longer than necessary. His face is inches away from her. She can see his long eyelashes flutter, shadowing his stormy blue eyes. His full lips slightly curve at the corners, beckoning, and his scent, something so fresh and clean like the air after the rain, under a mixture of mint and cedar, is so familiar and intoxicating that she can't help but leans into it a little. Michael tilts his head and gazes into her eyes the way he usually does when something puzzles or intrigues him. She always finds the gestures innocent and lovely, especially when they're complemented by hundreds of random questions that are somehow out of his knowledge, and a lot of times, hers as well. Right now, they just send chills to her bones because she can see nothing in them, no warmth, passion, or curiosity, nothing but a silent threat. “You will do what I say and stay quiet, or else”. He looks at her in a way a superior being would look at an inferior one, the way someone would study an insect to decide if it should be squished. The way angels look at humans. Before Kye can say anything else, Michael puts two fingers on her forehead. A zap of energy shot through her skin and everything goes dark after that.

***  
"Ok, girls, form a line."  
An extremely tall and skinny man in a neat black suit with a stony expression looked down on a group of 5 young girls trying their best to contain their excitement and nervousness at the same time. They were barely out of their teenage. Pitiful little things, some of them could be discarded after 1 or 2 months if the master grew tired of them or something else happened.

Domesticated companion, as it was delicately stated, was a mixture of a toy and a servant. Some of the girls here would be mere errand girls and housemaids, hardly noticed and remembered. Those were the lucky ones. Just fulfilled their daily duties and got the salary at the end of the month, no problems. The ones who got a little more rewards naturally would have to take a little more risks. Sometimes, the angel master would take interest in a specific servant/domesticated companion for some reason. When the master called for a girl or boy more often, it meant the pay grade was much better, with a few perks on top. Personal car rides and protection anywhere he or she wanted to go, daily expenses allowance, nice clothes, good food, people at the disposal..., but those things could mean either he or she was the master's favorite or a personal punching bag. Daily verbal abuses were the norms that included in the job descriptions. A few injuries here and there as a form of entertainment for the master were also expected. Again, angelic grace could fix pretty much any physical injury so nothing was worth the concern.

Angels with their eternal existence sometimes suffered from extreme boredom or doubts. They were taught to never lose faith and always obey the orders, but when God was absent for too long, even the most obedient angels started to lose themselves. They became unpredictable, either became more human-like in the way they thought and acted, or became completely unhinged. Their lack of empathy and Heavenly powers were a deadly combination. There were cases of dead or missing servants and domesticated companions, some badly damaged or burnt-out bodies found here and there but there was not much the police could do. Their hands were tight with the laws made by the Council, as if the angels actually needed laws to protect them.

Some people would immediately regret their decision after signing up, but once a boy or a girl put down his or her signature and fingerprints on the contract, that was it. There was no going back. The money was deposited into the person's account right away and it was nonreversible. What people decided to do with it was entirely up to them. The angels looked down on the concept of money entirely. They could never fully understand humans' desperation for those dirty, worthless pieces of paper or numbers in the bank account. 

And don't even think about running away. After all, where would you run? The city was surrounded by a 1000 feet tall wall that looked deceptively beautiful, made of a material that looked like glass and white steel frame, shiny in the sun, but heavily guarded by both human soldiers and angels, equipped with hundreds of automatic guns and cameras with built-in face recognition program. The wall was also a giant shocking device at 2300 Voltage, 15 amps that would kill in contact when other measures failed. Everyone would need permission to get in and out of the city. Outside of the city wall was miles and miles of nothing but ruins of the old world before the War.

Kye looked up at Mr. Bailey, the staff manager, with her tired face. She didn't sleep a wink last night, partly because of the new job which she didn't know what to expect, and partly because of Ruby's disappearance a few days ago. She worried about the girl and her whereabouts, her mom's health, and her brother's tantrum after discovering that Ruby was gone. Bailey gave Kye an intimidating look that made her eyes dropped to the floor immediately.

"Settle down," Bailey said to the girls. "I know today is your first day, but don't think I would be lenient to any of you. Mistakes are not tolerated. The loft doesn't require a lot of attendants so you would be rotated for the time being until I receive further instructions." He cleared his throat. "That's it for now. You will receive your uniforms and name tags in a moment." He concluded the speech and dismissed them with a wave of his hands. 

The rotation schedule was made based on the alphabetical order of their last name initials. Kye's last name was Adlin so she was the first to work. She had received the document on what she needed to know about the angel she would serve. Besides who he was, his schedule for the day, and some basic requirements, there was nothing else. Based on his schedule, her job should be an easy one. She would be on her own until the angel came back at 6 p.m. He wouldn't need to eat so there was no cooking required. She would wait to be called on if he needed something, other than that, make herself invisible and stay clear of the second level of the loft when he was back.

It took her half of the morning to clean the whole main area, first and second level. It was very spacious and clean but voided of any furniture besides a big white couch and a white, round marble coffee table in front of the fireplace. There were no decorations whatsoever. Everything was in white, probably to resemble Heaven. Matter of fact, even the doors, kitchen appliances, and staircase were white. Kye felt like she was in the middle of nothing. The whole place felt ethereal but empty and cold. All the rooms were locked beside the servant's room on the lower level. After finishing her task, she stayed in it, knowing the archangel won't be back anytime soon, still she kept the room door opened so she could hear if he came in early. She was supposed to greet and say goodbye to him every time he came in or left the place. Bothersome but not hard to do. Despite her best effort, after a while, her eyes started to get heavy. She fell fast asleep and missed the rustle of wings and clothes.

***  
Michael wraps Kye a little more tightly in the blanket and lifts her up as gently as he can. He carries her toward the men standing on the opposite side. As if on cue, two of them come forward with the lockbox, one gives it to one of Michael's men the same time his partner takes Kye from Michael's arms and carries her to their jeep. 

It takes Michael everything in his power not to follow the guy and demand him to give her back. The trade needs to be done. The archangel part in Michael makes sure that he follows through and forbids him to show any weakness, but it's hard. It is not every day that he finds someone he wants to offer his everything to, part of himself included. Matter of fact, besides God, none of his siblings receives that kind of commitment. He commits to the Hosts of Heaven as a whole, to his duty, but not to any individual angel. The act of grace sharing is extremely rare and strongly discouraged. It is the ultimate type of bond and sacrifice that will last for eternity. Kye knew the weight of it all and she still decided to go through with the Resistance's plan. It would be a lie to say Michael is not disappointed and angry. The old him would've smitten her the moment he discovered her betrayal. He trusted her with everything and this is what he gets in return. Despite all of that, it takes one look in her pleading eyes, and his armor crumbles. It's not that he didn't want the weapon back, it would be a dangerous addition to the Resistance's arsenal to use on him and his family, but the price of it is something he's not ready to pay.

***  
"No, no, it's not your turn." Kye took the dice from Michael's hand and threw them on the game board.  
"Why not?"  
"Because you rolled doubles to get out of jail, you don't get to take this turn."  
"You took a turn right after getting out of jail last time. What is the difference?"  
"I took the Free card. Remember?"  
Michael squeezed his eyes and tilted his head.  
"This game is confusing, to say the least. Who made the rules? Why do humans like it so much?"  
"You'll get a hang of it in no time. In real life, not everyone has the money and power to invest, buy and sell properties so we like to pretend sometimes. It is fun." She collected all the pieces into the box. "Lunchtime is almost over, don't you have a meeting with the Council this afternoon, Master?"  
Michael was still deep in thought, staring at the little man with a white mustache and top hat on the game box. Kye chuckled at the sight and went around the table to put her hand on his shoulder. Michael looked up at her.  
"Did you have lunch?" He asked.  
"I will in a moment, Master."  
"You can go ahead. I will get ready for the meeting."  
Kye smiled at him and turned away, but before she could stand up, Michael pulled her back toward him. His hand slid down from her wrist, their palms met and their fingers interlocked instinctively. He gently ran his other hand through her hair, from behind her ear down to the side of her neck, then pulled her face closer. The kiss was unexpected, gentle, and deep. He didn't close his eyes but kept them slightly open to take in the sight of her up close, the soft brown curls that framed her face, the light freckles on her cheeks and nose tip, the dark eyelashes fluttered, the faint dimples when she smiled on his lips. Even when Michael slowly pulled away, his eyes lingered on her. Kye looked like a child waking up from a happy dream and the sight put a smile on his face. Eventually, he let go of her and stood up.  
"I'll see you later."  
He said before turning away and walking upstairs. Kye's eyes followed him until he disappeared behind the office's double door. Her heart was full and her mind was in a haze.

***  
Michael leans back in his chair and looks up at the large mural that depicts Heaven and Earth in harmony on the ceiling. God was in the middle, glorified by his golden halo and surrounded by the angels. Under them was Earth with all of its inhabitants. The colors are lively and the details are perfect. He can see himself and all of his siblings faced God and looked at him in absolute adoration while their Father and Creator looked downward to Earth and extended his hands to the creatures below.

If God's will is for the angels to love all of his creations equally and selflessly, why is it so hard for the First Born to do so? At first, he could not understand why God would want him to love these new, naked, and primitive creatures more than himself and the angels, even God, but being a good son, he obeyed. Now, with the new feelings he has experienced, spreading like wildfire in his heart, how can he love everyone and everything equally? The truth is no one can fully understand God's will. They are all in the dark together, angels and humans alike.

He nurses a cup of Scotch in his hand. Angels don't eat or drink but he feels the need to do it in times like this. Even knowing, or hoping it is just a temporary situation, he can't help but feel the void in his heart. He has been in his office since he got back from the exchange. The alcohol doesn't give him any effects that he wants. He knows the bottles he has in the office are like drops in the ocean compared to what he needs to really get drunk, but the familiar warmth and bitterness roll past his tongue give him some comfort.

The vessel that he wears is one of a few that were brought to him the day after the War officially ended. They were either from the same chosen bloodlines or got strengthen with Enochian magic to contain his grace. They were supposed to be permanent or semi-permanent ones for Michael to use for the times he would be on Earth. Every angel garrison would take turn to station on Earth for 200 years. As the leader of the whole Heavenly Hosts, Michael would be on Earth with them for 400 years, then go back to Heaven swiftly before coming back for another 400 years. 

For some reason, this one caught his eyes. His last one was badly damaged to the point of unusable. The angels went through vessels like water during the War. Even when humans didn't really know what ticked or weren't equipped with the right weapons, they managed to cause some casualties. If the angels were not killed but wounded mortally during battles that they would need some time to heal, they just ditch their vessels and moved on to the new ones. The vessels might not be perfect but they didn't need them for long. Normally, to enter a body, an angel needed to get permission from the human soul inside, one way or another, but war created a lot of dead bodies which equals vacancies, and the angels just took them.

Wearing a vessel brought a lot of new sensations. Touch, sight, smell, hearing, and taste were overwhelming when they got activated all at once. The angels operated on a different level of energy and perception compared to humans, so naturally, their physical senses were not the same as humans. It was like hearing a sound on land versus while diving underwater. The angels had to tune out a lot of irrelevant statics and noises they could detect in the whole universe to focus on the important information. Michael understood physical senses are necessary to operate in a physical world, but to him, they were also vices and doorways to sins and temptations. He determined to keep himself above all of that. His world was black and white. His soul was like a frozen lake, clear and reflective, but cold and rigid. It had been the same for eons and would continue to stay the same until someone threw a stone in and the ice broke.

***  
Michael opens the red box laying on the desk in front of him and gently traces his fingers on the item inside. It looks like a short stick made of the same red mahogany wood as the box it's kept in. Enochian symbols are carved from one end of the item to the other, on two opposite sides. They light up following the touch of Michael. He picks the item up and the whole thing beams. The light starts to pulsate like heartbeats, reacts to the source of its grace nearby. The item then expands on both ends until it quadruples in length and a shiny celestial steel blade appears. Michael holds the lance in his hand and feels its power vibrates.


	5. Chapter 5

The road leading back to the Resistance compound is a small, hidden, and tricky to navigate road filled with mud, small stones, and broken branches washed down from the mountain by the rain. At some point, the road disappears altogether, and there's nothing but tall grass and rubbles. 

The bumping and noises from the car engine wake Kye up. She doesn't know how long she's been out. The last things she remembers were Michael's eyes and the warm sensation on her forehead. She slowly sits up while feeling very heavy-headed and dizzy. The oatmeal-colored blanket still wraps around her, she can smell the familiar clean scent on it, but it's very faint now. She looks through the back windshield and sees 3 other cars driving behind the jeep she's in. She turns back to look at the road ahead. The disheartened and hopeless feelings start to sink into her chest. There's nothing outside of the car windows but trees. After a while, everything blends into one color green. 

Two men in the front seats exchange a look. The one with dark blond hair who's driving looks at Kye through the rearview mirror.  
"Sleep well, princess?" His green eyes twinkle and the crow's feet at his eye's corner deepen.  
Kye exhales and wraps the blanket a little more tightly around her shoulders. She looks down at her bare feet without saying anything. After a few minutes, feeling like staying quiet doesn't really help, Kye looks up and meets the man's eyes through the mirror again.  
"Where are we going? Are we almost there?" She asked.  
"Everything in its own time." He says and turns on the car's radio.  
"5-21. Approaching main gate. 15 minutes."  
"Copy."  
"3-60 at main gate. Entering."  
"Copy."  
"42-60. 45-60 at main gate. Entering."  
"Copy."  
"32-16 on Bellow Passage. Approaching main gate. 25 minutes."  
"Copy..."  
Several different voices come on one by one. It goes on for a few minutes like a long report of people, locations, and times. The driver clicks his tongue and picks up the speaker microphone.  
"6-15 on Eastside. Approaching main gate. 20 minutes."  
His partner in the passenger seat scribbles something in a small notebook before closing it and tucking the short pencil in with his thick, long brown hair that almost touches his shoulders.  
"Ok, so we're gonna drop her off then getting back out with Garth's team. It's gonna be a long night." He sighs and rubs on his legs.

The car is filled with silence again until they reach the foot of the mountain. They slowly drive up a gravel road leading to a metal gate with a security booth on one side. On the other side, there's a maroon truck with a group of men, all carrying machine guns or assault rifles. Two men sit on the truck bed while the other three standing next to it. They see the convoy driving in and everyone raises his hand to greet the people in the cars. The guy who drives the car with Kye in it lowers the window on the passenger side. He nods and smiles while his partner raises his right hand to greet the men outside. They drive through the gate into a large dirt lot with a bunch of cars and trucks parked around. The men open their doors and get out of the jeep at the same time. It takes Kye a moment to gather her thoughts before following them.

"Ok. We'll see you guys in a few." The guy with dark blond hair said to the men come out from the other 3 cars. Some of them wave back to him while walking away. For an exchange seems to be so important, they’re awfully casual. Nobody seems to care about what Kye’s doing. Now there are only three of them in the lot. Both of the men turn back to look at Kye. She is staring at the small hill in front of them. There’s a large 3 story building that looks like it might've been a factory back in the day on top of the hill, two huge silos are on the left and a number of cabins fanned out to both sides of the building. The smoke from different chimneys mixes with the cold, damp air after the rain create a mist that floats around. The sky is gray and they can hear faint thunders from somewhere far away that guarantees more rains later. Everyone's mood seems to be affected by the weather.

Kye and the men stand in the lower area so there's no wind blowing on them. She's grateful for that because her teeth start to chatter and she doesn't think she can stand anymore cold and wet. The guy with longer brown hair who has been in the passenger seat walks to the back of the jeep and takes out a pair of old sneakers. He puts them in front of Kye and smiles at her encouragingly. They're quite large but Kye is grateful for the warmth and cushion they provide for her feet. Anything is better than walking barefoot on the freezing, mushy ground. 

"Let's go get you settled in." The guy said with a smile that makes two faint dimples appear on his cheeks. He turned back to the other guy and says “Hey, ill be right back.”  
“Come back soon man. We gotta go. Garth’s already blown up my phone.” The guy with dark blond hair says while leaning on the top of the jeep with his forearms. He didn't even look up.  
The brown hair guy makes a face and puts his hand on Kye’s back to guide her forward. She didn't realize how tall this guy is until now. He towers over her but his mannerisms make him seem gentle and kind. She cant tell much about the other guy, he has been quietly eyeing her with a lot of distrust since the moment she woke up. Kye looks up at the tall guy and gives him a shaky, tired smile. He's probably taller than Michael, but not by much. She immediately curses at herself for still thinking about the archangel. Their lives have already been detached from one another and there will be no coming back from something like this.

Kye walks slowly with the tall man in silence. They didn't see a lot of people out and about, probably because of the bad weather. Finally, they're in front of a small gray cabin with metal roof. The door swings open before they even knock. A woman with electric blue eyes and dark brown wavy bob comes out to greet them with a radiant smile.  
"Come on in! Took you guys long enough."  
The tall guy who walks with Kye smiles back. He doesn't seem at all surprised with her enthusiasm. The woman wears a long pink cardigan with a multicolor scarf, beige tank top, black yoga pants, and sneakers. Not very Resistance-y.  
"Oh, I'm the healer. Every camp needs one." She answers as if she can read Kye's mind. "I'm Hannah by the way. Nice to meet you, Kye."  
"Nice to meet you, Hannah" Kye smiles.  
At this point, it's pretty clear that people at the compound have been aware of her arrival. Hannah goes to the back room and brings out some clothes and personal hygiene items. She puts them on the table next to the bed Kye and the man sitting on and stands back to look at Kye from head to toes.  
"Not too bad. He could’ve definitely done worse" She mumbles under her breath before coming closer to put two fingers on Kye's forehead.  
The gesture is so familiar but so haunting that Kye jumps like her skin burns at the woman's touch. Tears start to roll out from her eyes uncontrollably. The man next to Kye quickly wraps his arm around her shoulders. Both he and Hannah shush, trying to calm Kye down.  
"I would not do that again unless you're 100% ok with it. I promise. We just gonna do things the traditional way then." The woman sighs with a strange knowing look in her eyes. She stands up and opens different cabinets and drawers to pull out what she needs then sets the items on a tray.  
"I'm gonna clean the dirt and scratches on your skin and check for other injuries, then I'm gonna draw some blood. Ok?"  
Kye nods. The tall man looks at her and asks. "Do you want me to stay here?" His arms still wrap around her.  
Kye looks into his hazel eyes and smiles before shaking her head. "It's ok."  
He slowly lets go of her and stands up. Before he reaches the door, she grabs his jacket sleeve.  
"Thank you." She speaks quietly.  
"You’re welcome. Call me if you need anything. I'm right outside." He smiles then walks out and closes the door.  
Kye turns back to Hannah.  
"I'm ready." She says.

***  
Michael watches the sun rising on the horizon through the glass window that spreads from floor to ceiling, covers one side of the loft. The sky is much clearer and covered in a light pink shade now after a long rainy night. Flocks of birds fly past in hurry. The world outside is still the same as ever, busy, fast, loud, but in here, he feels something has changed drastically. Who knows one person's absence can have that effect? It's like a stone gets thrown in a quiet lake, the rippling rings it creates just get bigger and bigger. 

The loft is always quiet but its quietness feels deafening now. Before he could spend the whole day outside working, comforted by the thought he would come back to a welcoming smile and warm hug. Now those things are gone. Surely, he doesn't need affections but they are nice things to have, and once he has it, are hard to let go of.

The knocks on the door pull Michael out of his train of thoughts.  
"Come in." He said  
A tall, large, bald man walks in with a folder in his hand.  
"Everything is ready, sir. Bobby Singer wants to meet at The Swan, 8 o'clock sharp tonight."  
"Neutral ground. He's smart. You can go now."  
The man nods and leaves the loft. Michael turns back to the window and looks out to the city skyline again. There's really no peace since the day he descended to Earth.

***  
The morning is usually the busiest time of the day at the Resistance's compound. People wake up and come out of their cabins after a long night. Everyone has his or her own designated position and job to do. Some people go to the watchtowers at the main gate and around the compound, changing shift with the people stood guard the night before. Some people jog, practice close combat fighting or shooting in groups. Some clean and organize weapons in a big tent nearby while others watering the fruits and vegetables in the greenhouse and garden behind the main building. The kitchen has opened for a while and the smoke from its chimney picks everyone’s mood up with the smell of bacon and baked beans. Line of cars and trucks come back from supplies transportations or other missions with tired but relieved men. Everything works like how it’s supposed to.

The ground is still wet and covered in muddy puddles from the rainy night before. Kye has just woke up from a long, restless night. She went to bed right after coming back from the kitchen, but the sleep refused to come to her for a while. She tossed and turned in bed for a long time. Her head was filled with images of Michael and the 4 years they have spent together, up until the moment he put his two fingers on her forehead. When she could finally drift off to sleep, the nightmares kept coming, one after another. She was always abandoned or hurt and a pair of blue eyes always chased after her in all of those dreams. She lost count of how many times she woke up sweating during the night. 

Kye stretches her arms and legs and looks at her reflection in the mirror hung on the cabin's door. She looks like hell but somehow a little better than yesterday. Hannah has cleaned and disinfected all of the minor wounds and scratches on her skin, then checked her thoroughly for internal injuries and contagious diseases she was sure she didn't have. "It's a must for newcomers to the compound, to protect everyone else," Hannah said. Kye warmed up to the woman in almost no time because of her upbeat personality. Hannah was very talkative. Within a 20-minute conversation, Kye learned about almost everyone who had lived in the compound, their names, personalities, and backgrounds. 

Everyone came to the compound for a different reason. The two men who drove Kye here yesterday were actually brothers. Their dad was a soldier and their mom was a nurse during the War. Classic love story until the man died in one of the big battles where thousands were killed on both sides. Their mom took them and ran deep into the mountainous area. In all those years, she fended for herself and her sons, raised them like warriors, and taught them everything they would need to survive. She died without knowing the War already ended for a while. On her dying breath, she told the brothers to go look for Bobby, one of the Resistance’s handlers and directors. She and Bobby used to date when they were teenagers. He stayed around even after she got married and they remained close friends. When the War happened, Bobby and the brothers' dad fought alongside each other. He was the one who brought their dad's belongings back when the guy was killed in action. Before their mom took them to the mountains, Bobby had told her if she ever needed his help, he would do everything in his power to help her. He gave her a card with a location and phone number on it. When she died, the brothers, who were 16 and 12 years old then, drove all night to the location in the card Bobby gave their mom. It was one of the Resistance’s early camps. The brothers were taken in and they never looked back. Kye could see why both of the brothers have the hardened look on their faces. Even the younger one, who had softer facial features, also looked like someone who had seen too much for his age.

Yesterday, after finishing with Hannah, Kye walked out to see the younger brother sitting on the ground next to the infirmary door. His back leaned against the outer wall and it seemed like he was sleeping. Rare rays of sunlight peeked out from the gray clouds shone directly on his face, turning it pink. He breathed softly and slowly. His eyelashes shook lightly with each breath. Kye didn't want to disturb the guy. He was probably tired after the whole exchange and the long ride back to the compound. She kind of felt for him knowing his and his brother's backstory then but also, she felt bad for knowing too much about his family’s tragedies from another person. She stood there for a while, didn't know what to do or where to go. After a few minutes, the guy opened one of his eyes to check around. He saw Kye and stood up quickly on his feet. Kye said apologetically:  
"Sorry, didn't mean to disturb you. You can rest if you're tired. It's not like I'm in a rush to go anywhere." She chuckled dryly.  
"I'm so sorry. I must've passed out for, God," He checked his watch quickly. "20 minutes. Are you all done here with Hannah?"  
"Yes, all done. I just need to take these back to cabin...12. I think." Kye held up a tote bag full of clothes and personal items. The oatmeal blanket was folded neatly on top of everything.  
"Ok, I know where it is. Let's go then before my brother starts to go off on me again." He chuckled.

They walked to a row of cabins next to each other not too far away from the infirmary and stop in front of a humble one made of pine logs with an owl carved on its gable. There wasn't anyone around.  
"They must've all gone to the kitchen. I can take you there after you drop these things off."

Inside the cabin, there were four bunk beds, 2 on each side of the room. Each bunk bed came with 2 bedside tables and a storage bench at the end. The bathroom door was straight ahead, facing the entrance. There was a coat rack filled with jackets and hats in different colors on the wall, next to several small framed pictures, photos, and article cutouts from newspapers. A mauve-colored vase filled with wildflowers sat on the right sided window sill.

The guy took Kye to the end of the cabin and showed her the bed that was going to be hers. It was the lower bunk of the one closer to the bathroom on the left side. The bed was made neatly with a gray blanket and matching pillow that both smelled very clean. Kye sat the bag down on the bed and sighed. She turned back to see the guy was staring at her with a concerned look in his eyes.  
Kye gave him a small smile. "I've kept you long enough already. Let's go to the kitchen." Kye said.  
"Hey, if you want to change before we go, I can wait. No problems at all." He assured.  
"I'm ok," Kye pulled at the new purple sweater she had over her white dress. "I don't want you to get in trouble with your brother."  
"He's fine." The guy smiled and shrugged. "We're supposed to go on supplies run tonight but it won't be for another 4 hours. Dean has the tendency to freak out when it comes to prepping by himself." He chuckled at the thought of his brother. "By the way, I've never officially introduced myself. I'm Sam. Sam Winchester." He held out his right hand.  
"You already know my name." Kye laughed and took his hand. "I'm Kye Adlin. Nice to officially meet you, Sam Winchester."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So after a long time debating if I should add the Winchesters, I did. The reason why I was hesitant because I don't want them to be the focal point of the story (They can easily be because of their amazing personalities and stories). It got to the point of being silly to keep calling them "the guys" or "the two men" since their parts getting bigger so despite the original plan of only giving hints that they're indeed the Winchesters, I have to give them an official introduction.  
> Another thing is I feel there's interesting chemistry between Kye and Sam, but only time can tell :)
> 
> PS: For people who've read chapter 6, i deleted it because i actually wrote a longer beginning scene but cut and intended to add it to chapter 7. After thinking about it, i will go with the original draft and the majority of what ive already posted as chapter 6 will be updated with more details as new chapter 7 ( you'll know what im talking about when you read chapter 7) I think it will flow better into chapter 8.  
> If you've read this long note and this story so far (even when you're a silent reader :) yes i see you) I appreciate y'all very much!


	6. Chapter 6

Sam’s hand was large with long fingers covered in calluses. It definitely was the hand of someone who often did hard labor or physical training. It was warm and dry that gave Kye an assuring feeling, but she found herself secretly and unreasonably expected a tingle when their skins touch. That weird thought dampened her mood quickly. Kye turned away and pulled out a pair of mustard-colored slip-ons from the tote bag. She changed into them and handed the old sneakers back to Sam.  
"Thank you for the shoes." She smiled. “Let’s go.”

They walked side by side to the kitchen. It was sunset but because of the rain earlier, the sky got much darker. All the outdoor lights were already turned on automatically. The silence started to wrap thickly around them. Kye slowed down in her pace and spoke quietly.  
“Can I ask you something, Sam?”  
“Sure, anything.” Sam shrugged and looked down at her.  
Her head was a little below his shoulders but she seemed much smaller and more fragile at the moment. Her arms folded tightly to her body, her thin eyebrows furrowed and her lower lip turned white because she was biting on it hard. Her little nose and cheeks were reddened due to the cold air. The wind blew her hair into a brown-colored mess. She looked like someone who had lost everything and was all alone in this world. The only things that still looked lively and beautiful on her face were the large sparkled brown eyes.

Kye reminded Sam of himself 16 years ago when they just got to the camp after losing their mom. At least he always had Dean. From what he heard, Kye had a mother and younger brother back in Ayham but there was no way to tell when or if she could ever see them again after what they pulled. Sam didn't know much about the relationship between Kye and the archangel, but he would not bet her safety on some feelings Michael may or may not have for her, and definitely not after the betrayal. The compound was also hundreds of miles outside of Ayham. To get back to the city, they would need to pass several checkpoints with the angels and human law enforcement employed by the Council, then the City Wall. Not impossible but also not a breezy task.

“Why me?” Kye’s voice cut off Sam’s train of thoughts. “What’s so important about me that you guys were willing to trade the artifact for, right after you've just got it? It wasn't easy for anyone to get a hand on that thing in the past few years from what I've heard. Sure wasn't easy for me, no matter how much of an advantage you guys thought I had with Michael.” She spurted out. Her eyes started to fill up with tears of frustration. It was not a good feeling being kept in the dark, especially after everything she had put on the line and lost. Kye felt like she just made the biggest mistake and now stuck with the consequences.

“Look," Sam clenched his right hand in his pocket. It was hard to look into someone’s eyes and lie, or not tell the whole truth. "I don't know the whole deal, but from what I've heard, the bosses have some new plan regarding the weapon." He gave her a vague answer. "About you, I really don't know what they have in mind. I'm sorry for what you've been through, but please believe me when I say this, we didn't mean for you to get hurt and will not let any harms come your way. I promise.”

Kye was not very convinced with what he said but she bit her tongue and continued on her way. She didn't expect to get anything out of him anyway. Sam walked slowly behind while staring at the back of her head. He hated when the innocents got hurt in the process of a fight like some kind of collateral damages, didn't matter if that fight was for a noble cause or the whole mankind’s fate hung on to it.

The closer they get to the kitchen, the clearer the sounds of people talking and dinnerware clanking were. They stopped at the door and looked inside through the glass pane.  
“I'm gonna have to leave you here, Kye...” Sam exhaled.  
He put the pair of sneakers down and pulled out his small notebook from the jacket's pocket. He wrote down a phone number before tearing the page and gave it to Kye. “This is my number. Please let me know if you'll ever need anything.” Sam gave her a genuine, sad smile and nodded to himself before picking the shoes up and walked away.

Kye stared at the piece of paper for a long time before looking up to watch Sam leave. The wind blew his almost shoulder-length brown hair in all directions. He looked lonely and vulnerable despite his size at this moment. Kye didn't know what would make him look like that or why he even cared about her situation, but she couldn't think too much about it. She already had enough questions and problems to deal with. At the end of the day, she couldn't trust the Resistance to actually take care of her. She still didn't know what their real intention toward her was. She watched until Sam disappeared around the corner, then turned back to look inside the kitchen again. Seeing all of the unfamiliar happy faces, she sighed and left.

Kye needed a walk to clear her mind, despite the hunger and exhaustion she felt. The compound did not have a complicated layout but it was huge. Kye kept going aimlessly with the piece of paper squished up in her hand until she reached the top of the hill. The wind howled around her and there was the 3-story main building, standing like a beast in the dark. It looked ominous but there were still lights in a few windows on the third floor. Kye thought about it and decided that it was best for her not to advance any further. Curiosity could kill a cat, especially one like her. Her position was awkward so she didn't want to chance her luck. Kye turned around and found her way back to the cabin.

There was no moon or stars in the sky that night because of the bad weather. Everything was in the shade of dark blue. It also got much colder then compared to earlier. Kye hugged her body tightly trying to keep some warmth in her sweater but it was no good. She suffered all the way back to the cabin. When she got there, the light was on and two women were chatting happily with each other inside. They stopped their conversation and looked up at her when she walked in.

"Hey, you. Nice to meet you, what's your name?"  
One woman with a round, dimpled face and blond hair tightened in a ponytail stood up and approached Kye with a brilliant smile. She had the right amount of chirpiness in her voice that picked people's mood up without annoying them and after a long, terrible day, Kye didn't mind it at all. The woman wore a Sherpa-lined denim jacket with a black and red plaid buttoned shirt, pajama pants, and chunky fur trim plaid slippers. The other one had pixie-cut dark brown hair, also wearing pajama pants and a white and purple long-sleeved t-shirt, smiling at Kye without saying anything.  
"I'm Kye, Adlin. Nice to meet you guys." Kye shook the woman's hand then turned to smiled at the other one.  
"I'm Donna Hanscum. This is Jody Mills. We've heard someone new came today but didn't know they would assign you to our cabin. There're a lot of cabins around...Anyway, welcome to cabin 12." Donna smiled and continued. "We're supposed to have 8 people in the cabin, as you can see, but there're only me and Jody at the moment and we don't expect to have more newcomers anytime soon."  
She pointed to a bunk bed with both bunks occupied next to the window with the wildflower vase. “This is our spot. I know you've already put your stuffs on that bed," she pointed at the bed with Kye's tote bag on it. "But feel free to choose any other bed you like. It doesn't matter anyway."

Donna jumped on her top bunk as the way to end the conversation. Jody followed suit to the bunk below. As she passed Kye, she also held out her hand and said “Welcome" with a smile. Before Kye knew it, she heard faint snores coming from both bunks of the bed. These women definitely didn't seem like the worst roommates to have and they started off well. Kye chuckled and went into the bathroom. She desperately needed a hot bath to get all the gunk and dirt out of her hair and body. Her bones and muscles ached and the depressing feeling started to sink in her chest again. Kye ran the water almost scalding hot before taking off all of her dirty clothes and stepped in. 

She realized she had forgotten to ask Sam or anyone here about where Ruby was or how to contact her. If she talked to the girl, maybe she could've got some answers. Ruby would never lie to her, so that would be the first thing to do in the morning. Figuring out her next move, Kye leaned back in the tub and slowly slid down until she fully submerged in the water. It felt like she kept sinking deeper and deeper to the bottom. There was nothing left around, nothing to remind her of the outer world, nothing but a cocoon of warmth and sadness.

***  
As Fig promised, Michael was up and back to normal in almost no time that day. Kye was in shock when she turned back and saw his big blue eyes watching her attentively, clear as the sky on sunny days with no hint of tiredness or pain. They even glowed a little as his grace charged up. It was just like he lay there consciously the whole time, without being shot, poisoned, or having someone dug into his grace just hours ago. Fig definitely did wonders on the archangel, Kye would have to give his chubby cheeks a thousand kisses next time she saw the guy.

She approached Michael with a smile before a realization hit her. He might've been awake the whole time and listened to the conversation between her and Ruby. It would not be a good thing. Her smile died off and she just stood there barefoot on the dusty floor, in her blood-stained sequin dress, looking nervously at the archangel. Kye prayed she didn't just put a target on Ruby's back. 

"Kye, did you get hurt?"  
Michael slowly sat up and asked her in his deep, monotone voice. His eyes fixed on her while he gingerly touched where the wound used to be on his shoulder. He looked more human at that moment than ever before with his boyish disheveled dark hair and his raised eyebrows.  
"No...I'm not, Master. How are you feeling? Do you feel any pain or discomfort anywhere?" Kye walked closer to him.  
“How long have we been here?” Michael looked around and asked, didn't answer her questions. He didn't even ask where they were.  
Kye’s stomach sank but she managed to give him a smile. It was probably just Michael acting like his normal self, she hoped.  
"I brought you here last night after we got to the alley. It was safe to stay inside somewhere and wait for the men to come. We've been here all night as you can see." Kye looked out the windows at the rising sun. Her answer didn't contain the whole truth but at least she didn't lie to Michael. She was just thankful he didn't ask her how his wound got healed because she surely couldn't answer that question.  
The archangel also looked in the same direction before turning back and stared at Kye.  
“You've been worried.” He stated in a familiar matter-of-fact way that put a smile on Kye's face.  
She gently put her hand on his face.  
"Yes, I have. You gave me a good scare, Master."  
Michael grabbed her hand from his face and held it on his lap. He looked down at their joined hands before looking up at Kye's face again.  
"I'm fine now, so don't be scared."

Kye had waited to hear that from him. She leaned down and wrapped her free arm around Michael's neck. Under a faint scent of blood and a stronger chemical one, he still smelled like himself, clean as fresh air. Kye inhaled all of them in comfort and relief. The wall she built to keep out all of her fear, stress, and heartache from the night before started to crumble down. She buried her face in Michael's bare shoulder and sobbed. 

Grace slowly rose to his skin surface to meet hers. It felt like thousands of tiny prickly kisses. The familiar ticklish feeling made Kye picked her head up and laughed while tears still rolling down her cheeks.

Being curious, Michael used his free hand to pull her arm out of his neck and keep her in front of him. He studied her face for a moment before grabbing the hand Kye used to wipe her tears with and pulled her back. He let go of both hands and wrapped his arms around her waist, then rested his head on her chest. 

Kye closed her eyes and put her lips in Michael's dark brown hair. Her erratic heartbeats started to slow down  
"Next time, let me know before you want to pass out on me." She mumbled.  
The archangel chuckled at what she said and squeezed her harder.

***  
Kye jumped up in the bathtub and coughed violently. She fell asleep and a lot of water had gotten in her mouth and nose. The warmth and floatiness were gone, instead, coldness and darkness wrapped around her like a suffocating blanket and weighed her down. She thought she was stuck in a never-ending nightmare. The hunger came back full force after almost knocked Kye off her feet but she was glad to feel it. It reminded her that she was still alive. 

Kye got out of the bathroom and was grateful to find the two women were still fast asleep. She quickly put on some clean clothes and tip-toed out of the cabin. Learning from last time, Kye wore a turtleneck top under a thick pine green zip-up hoodie and brown sweat pants, which might've been made for someone who was twice her size, to protect herself from the cold. The rain started again in combination with the raving wind. Kye put her hood on and braced herself for the weather. The wind and rain slapped on her face and pushed her small body back and forth all the way to the kitchen, so there were no words to describe how relieved she felt once she stepped through the door.

The kitchen was warm and quiet. It was an extremely large and brightly lit multi-plane hangar that got repurposed, filled with rows of benches and long tables covered in red and white checkered tablecloths. There was a line of brown wooden tables filled with baskets of bread, snacks and fruits, bottles of water, stacks of clean plates, and utensil holders. The kitchen opened at all times to serve people coming back from missions at weird hours. Kye sat down on one of the benches and fidgeted with her hands, didn't know what to do next. She still felt unwelcomed here at the compound even when everyone she had come across so far showed her nothing but kindness. 

An older lady with a gray ponytail and deep wrinkles came over to ask if Kye needed anything. She told Kye they had soup and lasagna earlier but she could also made her a sandwich if she wanted.  
"Anything is fine. Thank you." Kye gave the woman a weary smile.

She came back with a bowl of soup, a sandwich, and a cup of orange juice. "Let me know if you needed anything else." She said and walked away. It was interesting to see all the people of different ages and backgrounds at the Resistance's compound. This old woman reminded Kye of someone she knew growing up. They were actually polar opposite but Kye couldn't help but see the similarities and it put a warm feeling in her chest.

***  
The quietness of late night made Kye think of home. She missed her mom and brother terribly. The company probably would come to their apartment in a few days to announce that Kye was "released from service," with no further explanations, just the salary for the portion of the month she had worked. That was the worst news families with people working as domesticated companions or servants for the angels could receive, especially when the person went missing. It could mean a number of things, murdered at the hands of their own masters was a big possibility, but the families never had a definitive answer. 

That would kill her mom and Nick, but what would hurt them even worse was the trust and expectations they had for Michael turned out to be wrong. They had hoped that Michael was different from other angels, that he actually cared about Kye and their family, and that his relationship with Kye was more than a master-servant relationship. They would spend their lives together, or at least Kye would spend her life with him. Her family didn't know much but they could only hope for the best based on what they had seen. Kye's brother was only in his teenage. He would have to drop out of that school and started looking for works to help their mom out. They definitely would be in bad shape without her. She just prayed to God, wherever he was, that Michael would leave her family alone and not punish them for her mistake.

Kye knew she was safe with her thoughts here in the compound with all of the wardings they had. Before, every time her thoughts or emotions became stronger, when she thought about the archangel, or calling for him, Michael would almost always know and come for her. It was a pull, an urge to answer, not really because of his instinct as an angel, but mainly was his choice to connect to her. It was heartbreaking but also relieved to have that connection severed between them at this moment. 

***  
The first year working for Michael was tough. He didn't have any human emotions or understandings. He looked down on the whole human race as nothing but parasites, destroying his Father’s great works and maybe the reason why God left, so his treatments toward humans reflected just that. He was cold and quick to use different torture methods as forms of discipline. The archangel had an absolute, almost twisted, sense of responsibility and duty. He expected complete obedience and submission from his employees and servants. Everything needed to go exactly how he wanted it or severe punishments would come after.

There was a high turnover rate of employees at the loft but new people kept signing up because of the attractive compensations. Kye received a lot of perks working for Michael. Not only he paid a good monthly salary, just for her to spend time with him, even after their relationship took a different turn from being strictly professional, he also cured her mom of acute asthma and sent her brother to a good private school for free. 

Kye was Michael's sole companion after the first year. She moved into the loft and accompanied him everywhere he went. They spent the majority of every day together. Somehow, she could figure out a way to deal with him from the get-go. Being born in poverty and losing her father at a young age made Kye a very sensitive and observant girl. She learned to read people and asset situations well and those were the skills she relied on working at the loft. 

She realized Michael loved to talk about Heaven and his achievements, how good of a son he was to God and a leader to his angel siblings, so she stroked his ego with a lot of questions about these topics, but only when the timing seemed right. Other than that, she kept herself almost invisible. The archangel also had a huge curiosity about humankind and modern culture but he covered it well so she picked on it slowly, one thing at a time. It was a calculative move at first to become his favorite and the last companion remained but it slowly turned into genuine care and feelings for the archangel. 

He was not a fragile soul that needed to be taken care of but she felt deep down inside, he was quite lonely and lost. God had left the building and no one knew where he went. No instructions, just billions of angels and humans left under Michael’s control. Even when the angels were supposed to be a family, they were not. They were an army. There were doubts, distrusts, and disagreements simmering under the surface at all times, and those were the perfect ingredients for a civil war just waiting to happen.


	7. Chapter 7

It was a week after the attack and things had gone back to normal, or almost. Kye secretly waited for Ruby's call but at the same time, she wished she would never receive it at all. Their lives had taken different directions that maybe irreconcilable at the moment. Of course, Kye wished Ruby would come back home safely someday but realistically for most people, once they joined the Resistance's force, they were in for life. A lot of people also died young in their missions. Things were complicated, to say the least. On top of that, both of them could be in immediate danger when getting back in contact with each other. The angels were not useless when it came to keeping track of all Resistance activities and related matters. Ruby said she was on the watchlist so it was definitely not a good thing. Of course, she would be smart when or if she decided to contact Kye, but Kye would rather not get involved at all. She loved Ruby with all her heart but she also had a life to live and people to take care of.

Things were also different between her and Michael. Since she realized his true feeling and intention toward her, though she was happy, things got a little awkward, and it was not Michael's fault. He still gave her the same attention as before but she was the one who pulled away, and if he realized something was off between them, he wouldn't say a thing about it. Michael never once questioned Kye any further about the day they got attacked and ended up at Ruby's place. It seemed like he was not curious about it at all, or more likely, already got the answers he needed. Kye thought if Michael wanted to punish her for reconnecting with her friend, who happened to be a Resistance member and also the one who helped save his ass, there was nothing she could do. He could've done it already. However, she wouldn't want to push it and decided the smart thing to do was to just avoid talking about it altogether. On top of everything, his question on the walk that day still weighed on her heavily, so she either stayed in the servant's room most of the time or when she had to be close to Michael, kept the talking minimum. Michael was not really a conversationalist either, besides when he needed to get his points across, so there was mostly silence between them.

That night, out of the blue, Kye received a call from an unknown number. She was sitting by her vanity table and ready to go to bed when the phone rang. For some reason, she felt the need to pick it up.  
"Hello, who's this?"  
"Guess who..." Ruby's trademark sing-song voice was on the other side.  
"Jeez, took you long enough. What's up?" Kye didn't know why but she started to whisper. "Are you supposed to call like this though? What if they listen in on us?"  
Michael's footsteps pacing back and forth upstairs added more to the state of anxiety she was having. He could be looking for her and zapped in here at any moment, even after many times she told him about personal spaces and boundaries. Some habits just died hard.  
"Relax, it's a disposable phone. I have like 20 of them at all times. With wardings! So no worries. How you've been? How's your feather boyfriend?"  
"Again, he's not my boyfriend," Kye sighed and rolled her eyes. She didn't even know what exactly was the relationship between her and Michael and she didn't want to label it, not yet. What they really felt about each other was the only thing that mattered at the end of the day. "We're fine. Matter of fact he woke up that day right after you left, good as new. Fig really knows what he's doing." Kye chuckled.  
"Of course, he's the best we have over here. The guy doesn't seem like it but he's a genius, with some weird hobbies though."

Kye could imagine Ruby rolling her eyes fondly when she talked about Fig. She did miss the girl a lot. It would be so good if they could go back to the old times, gossiped about people, ran around the streets, took shitty part-time jobs and dreamed about a grand future together. They didn't have much but they always had each other. It was a simpler time that would always be kept among Kye's happy memories.

Before they could go far in their conversation, Kye heard a rustle and looked up in the mirror to see Michael standing behind her in the corner of the room. He still wore the same outfit as earlier during the day, minus the suit jacket, a tailored navy blue vest and matching dress pants, a white dress shirt under and a blue tone-on-tone paisley silk tie. The outfit complemented his eyes perfectly and made them impossibly blue, even more than usual, while his hair and eyebrows looked almost ink-black under the room's yellow light. He leaned on the wall, observing her. It was quite a sight and as good as it looked, Kye could never get used to him appearing out of thin air and standing so close behind her. She froze for a moment and Ruby caught that on the other side.  
"Hey, the angel is nearby, isn't he? Meet me at Marco's this Saturday, 3 p.m. sharp. Don't be late!" She talked fast then hung up.

Kye slowly put the phone down on the table and took a second to gather herself before turning around to face Michael.  
"Do you need something, Master? You could've called me."  
She stood up and approached him with a smile. When Kye got closer, she gently touched his left arm before pulling his hand out of the pocket to lock her fingers with his. His hand was dry and cold as a block of ice, but it warmed up to the same temperature as her hand's almost instantly.  
"You said we could read Brave New World together. We can do that now before you sleep if you're not tired." Michael said while studying her face and squeezed her hand. He didn't ask who she was on the phone with and Kye was grateful for that.

Kye looked down to where their hands linked and smiled. As much as she was hesitant, Michael always had a way to pull her out of her shell toward him. The way he asked her to spend time with him reminded Kye of a shy teenage boy, not an all-powerful being that basically owned her. It was hard not to fall for these little things.

As soon as Kye agreed to come with him, Michael put his right hand in between her shoulder blades and zapped both of them upstairs. Kye swayed on her feet when they landed in the library. She thought they would walk as usual. She could never get used to this method of traveling. The only good thing was shorter distances were not nearly as bad as longer ones. She leaned on Michael and closed her eyes to wait for the dizziness to go away. The whole time, Michael just stood there patiently with his arms wrapped around her. He stroked her hair and put his lips on her forehead. A warm sensation poured into Kye and spread from where they touched to the rest of her body. She blinked her eyes a few times and looked up at his face. The archangel gave her a faint smile and led her toward a white velvet chaise in the middle of the room with a thick, leather-bound, and very old-looking book on it.

Michael pulled Kye down next to him and gave her the book. After a few quiet minutes of reading together, Michael just leaned back and looked at her with his eyes half-closed. Kye knew he was not tired. Angels were never tired or sleepy unless their grace was diminished somehow. Being concerned, she turned to him and asked.  
"Are you feeling ok, Master?"  
Michael straightened his back up and leaned closer to her.  
"You've been avoiding me." He stated. It was not a question.  
Kye stammered. "No, I haven't...," but one glance in his eyes and something softened inside of her. She had acted strange around him lately and that probably confused the archangel.  
"Ok... Maybe I have avoided you a little." Kye sighed. "I understand now what you wanted to ask me that day when we went for a walk. Even when I still don't fully understand the whole process, I know it's something that will affect both of us greatly, you especially. I don't really care about what other people or angels would think or say, I just don't want you to take any risks because of me. That's all I care about. I know what I feel about you in my heart but I just can't give you a sure answer at this moment."

To have her feelings reciprocated should be something Kye always wanted, but it was more than that. Turning immortal with Michael's grace was a huge decision to make with a lot of factors to consider. Kye just couldn't make up her mind and also couldn't help but feel guilty for taking so long and still not having an answer for him. She knew she was just delaying it and she couldn't avoid it forever.

Usually, when a domesticated companion reached a certain age, he or she would get released from service, like a retirement. If the angel enjoyed a person’s companionship enough, when that person passed away and went to Heaven, he or she would continue being with the same angel. The contract that people signed when they got selected for the job was actually a blood contract, but most people didn't know that. It would last for eternity unless the angel master broke it off or the human servant died without a request for after-life service from the angel master.

Realistically, no master-companion relationships lasted long, for one reason or another. One of the big reasons would be the human lifespan. Every angel would go through many domesticated companions during his or her 200 years on Earth. Most humans were either let go when they reached their retirement age or died immaturely at the hands of their masters. The angels were usually not attached or interested in humans very much, but of course, there were exceptions.

Being together for a long time, some angel masters and human servants developed real friendships or romantic relationships. Some even went as far as producing offsprings, but those were pretty rare due to the incompatibilities of the two races. The unions between angels and humans were mostly frowned upon by both races. It was unholy to the angels, but the main concern to them when it came to these types of unions would be it usually made the angel want to share his or her grace with the human partner to protect the person from getting old, sick, or injured. The act would temporarily weaken the angel and the recovery time varied. In some other cases, the angel gave up his or her grace totally to experience human life with the partner. The Resistance had also taken advantage of these relationships to infiltrate the angelic ranks and turn quite a few angels to their side. It became a big problem for the garrisons. To humans, willfully being in bed with angels was simply a disgrace and betrayal to their own kind.

Michael picked Kye's hand up from the book and held it in his. "It is a big decision so take all the time you need to think about it, but please know this, I don't make mine lightly. When I said what I said, I've fully prepared for the consequences. You are worth it for me to make that decision."

It was probably as close to a love declaration as Kye could ever get out of Michael. It moved her and tears started rolling out from her eyes. She leaned forward to put a kiss on his lips. It was a hesitant, butterfly touch at first that quickly turned into something else when the archangel ran his hand through her hair and pulled her closer to him.

He could taste her tears on his lips, salty, bitter, and sweet, like the mixture of her emotions.  
_She is beautiful. Father must've been proud when he created humans._  
The thought startled Michael but didn't surprise him as much as he thought. Although he still saw the majority of the human race as troublesome, ugly, violent, and primitive, he had slowly and steadily fallen for one in the past three and a half years. The alien and exciting feelings he felt for her, he never knew he could and was not sure he should, but for the first time in eons, he did not care. The rights, wrongs, or judgments he would receive from his Father and angel siblings suddenly didn't seem to matter all that much.

Michael picked Kye up on his lap. His lips never left hers. He traced his right hand from her calf all the way up to under the lace trim of her nightdress, the other one squeezed her waist with a bruising force that made Kye whimper. Her thin eyebrows squeezed and she pulled back a little.  
"What's wrong?" Michael opened his eyes like someone just woke him up from a dream.  
"You hurt me." Kye frowned and lifted the side of her dress for him to see the angry pink hand mark on her fair skin.  
"I can fix it." He wanted to pull her back but Kye avoided his hand.  
"Leave it. It's not a big deal... I want to keep it, as a reminder."  
Kye bit her lower lip and smiled at the puzzled archangel. She slowly pulled the silk belt to untie her night robe and let it fall off her body before lifting the matching nightdress inside over her head. She dropped it on the floor in front of the chaise and watched Michael's eyes followed the piece of garment then right back at her.

It took him a moment to react to what she did. He opened his mouth trying to say something but nothing came out. His brain was overloaded every time he saw this sight of Kye. He gently touched the side of her neck and took everything in his mind, her small, heart-shaped face with very light freckles, the thin curve eyebrows, small pointy nose, and little round lips. The best features on her face were her large brown eyes that always sparkled every time she looked his way. His eyes followed the curve from her neck, passed her full breasts behind a curtain of long, soft brown hair, down to her small waist and hips. Michael gazed at Kye for a long time with such adoration in his eyes that made her suddenly feel self-conscious. Who was she to deserve this from someone like him? Could she ever be good enough?

Kye couldn't be lost in her thoughts for long before Michael started to kiss her again and this time, his kisses contained all of the hunger and searching for approval from her. They came in like a storm and took all of the air out of her lungs. She felt the room span around them and Michael was the only rock she could hold on to. She dug her nails in his vest shoulder while tugging on his silk tie, trying to undo it. Michael grabbed her hand to stop it before reluctantly breaking away from the kiss and putting her down on the chaise.

Kye leaned back with both legs folded to one side and twirled her hair, watching Michael undress in front of her. He did everything at a normal pace but in the heat of this moment, it was painfully slow. Her eyes trailed his hands' movements from the blue tie, how they pulled it apart, then went on to undo the buttons one by one before unbuckling the belt. His well-defined tan skinned torso was bare under the opened dress shirt. During this whole time, his eyes never once left hers. It was sweet torture and a sight that no matter how many times Kye had seen, always had an effect on her. She felt weak and a pool of desire filled up in the pit of her stomach. Kye started to frown more and twirl her hair faster in impatience.

Michael chuckled at her pouting face, Kye could be like a child sometimes when she wanted something badly, not like he didn't give her almost everything she could've asked for. When he started comparing their ages, she was indeed a child, but she definitely grew much more comfortable around him over time. Michael remembered when she first came into his life, how prudent she was. Every step she took was careful as if her life depended on it and everything she did was with an intention. Sometimes, he knew she was calculative and played mind games with him, but not every day there was someone who provoked his mind that way, and his eternal life could be so repetitive and boring, so he let her. He wanted to see how far she would go before he had to put a stop to it. He was glad it never reached that point.

When the last piece of clothes left his body, Michael came over and leaned down, bracing himself on the back of the chaise, to continue the kiss that left unfinished. Kye wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down on top of her. Michael's cool and heavy body made her shiver before it slowly warmed up on hers. His hand played with the little bow on the side of her underwear then suddenly grabbed it forcefully. Kye knew what's on his mind so she quickly grabbed his hand.  
"Do not tear it."  
She glared at him but her tone didn't carry any real bite. Michael was rough with no instincts to guide him on how to be gentle. He had the tendency to destroy stuffs when he lost control. Matter of fact, it applied to pretty much everything he did. If he wanted something, he would get it by any means necessary and obliterate everything on the way. Absolute determination was always his best and worst quality. Kye knew the dark side of him but she just couldn't turn away.

Michael gave her an apologetic smile then let her hand guide him to slowly take that last piece off her body. He sighed in contentment when Kye was completely naked with nothing but her long hair fanned out under him. Even when she was more than that, in his mind, this was what sin and temptation must look like. Her fair skin turned pink under friction and heat, her brown eyes closed and her small lips parted in a gasp when he pushed his way in fully. Her chest rose and fell in the same rhythm as his movements. The contrast of her soft brown hair on the white velvet burned into his mind and woke up other sensations all at once. Her scent was sweet and decadent, like freshly bloomed roses and ripe sweet pears, like a small garden that came alive under late August sun, like summer wind blew through wheat fields and soaked up their scent. She tasted like earth and salt, feverishly hot and slick with sweat, but he couldn't get enough. His name never sounded so good, in combination with her desperate cries and whispers.

Their bodies melt into one as Kye's every fiber became unraveled. She completely gave herself to the archangel and held on to him as if she was a small boat rocking on violent waves and Michael was her only anchor. The world seemed to swirl around them. His blue eyes glowed and wandered on her body set every single nerve end inside of her on fire. The more Michael gave, the more she wanted. She was desperate for the electrifying feeling of his skin. She loved the clean scent that wrapped around her like summer showers and cleansed her from inside out. She loved the dull pains when his hands tangled in her hair, when his lips bruised her skin, or when he went in too deep. She didn't care if he broke her in pieces. It was wrong for wanting an angel that way but It felt so right. It was Michael.

Kye bit on Michael's arms hard enough that it drew blood. She licked her lips and looked up at him with a smile that sent him over the edge. He dropped down and buried his face in her hair to muffle her name in a deep growl. The room started to shake with energy. Books fell from the endless tall shelves and all the glass objects in the room, the windows included, exploded. Flashes of lightning appeared in the night sky outside showing the shadow of a large pair of wings, accompanied by two smaller pairs, on the wall behind Michael's back. They were larger than both of their bodies combined and spread from one side of the room to the other. Michael's eyes glowed up brilliantly in the dark at the same time. Kye was in awe of that sight just like the very first time she witnessed it. Strong winds blew past the room like they were in the middle of a storm, knocked down the rest of the items that still standing. The visual intensity and the fluctuation of temperature and vibration shot through Kye all at once and something erupted in her body. The whole world seemed to be shocked awake with more vibrant colors and sharp sounds for a minute before everything died down.

***  
They lay together on the carpet, surrounded by a mess of books and small items, dry leaves and broken glass. The moonlight from outside gave everything a cool, soft glow. There were no other sounds in the room beside the ticking of an old clock and the thumping of two hearts beat in sync. Kye stared out the broken window frames at nothing. Michael's warm and solid body reminded her that everything was real and he was still here with her. His left arm wrapped around her shoulders while the right hand traveling back and forth on the curve between the middle of her back and her bottom. She had been thinking and the quietness and contentment of this moment gave her clarity.  
"Michael..." Kye whispered.  
The hand rubbing on her back slowed down letting her know he heard it and was waiting for her to continue. She lifted her head to look the archangel in the eyes.  
"You know, it's really scary for me to imagine an endless life on Earth, with everyone I've ever known and loved gone, but when I imagine you will be there with me, it's not so scary anymore. And I'd rather it is you than anyone else. I don't want you to spend eternity by yourself, not anymore, and I also don't like the thought of you with someone else either. I know it's selfish but I want to go everywhere you go, Heaven and Earth, not as a servant spirit but as an equal next to you, in this physical form of mine. I know at some point I will have to say goodbye to my mom and brother, but I can see them again in Heaven. Maybe I can even help others in the process. So yes, I would like that, but only if that is with you, Michael. It won't be easy for both of us, but I will be there next to you, no matter what, and I know you will do the same. I'm happy that you've chosen me."  
The archangel didn't reply but the way his eyes brightened up like two small flames and he looked at her like she was the only thing, human or angel, mattered in the world, Kye knew her answer touched him. His lips curled up slightly and he pulled her closer to put a kiss on her forehead.  
"Thank you." He whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So there you have it, the first (updated) sex scene. I tried! This is an experience to see if I can write it. I know it's very light and might not be up to par when you're looking for smut or something specific but this is the style I prefer until I figure out how to up the level of spices tastefully (And I do want to up it, trust me :)  
> I was quite happy with the scene at the end to be honest because I want to focus on their feelings/thoughts. Sex was a canvas for them to express those and a welcoming bonus to the scene.
> 
> Another thing might not be big but I should point out, I hope it's not a dealbreaker for some readers, is I know all Michael's vessels in the show or the notable ones, all have green eyes (For being from the same bloodline and such) especially the one I've chosen for this story - Young John Winchester/Matt Cohen, but most angels in the show had blue-eyed vessels and their eyes glowed bright blue when they wanted to show off their power so I'm really impressed with that. Also, I'm obsessed with Cas/Misha's eyes :D Who doesn't? So those are the reasons for describing Michael with blue eyes in this story.


End file.
